Waterboys Have Their Troubles, Too (Cont.)
Screen 2 of 4Some of the workmen, however, claimed several times they had seen Goofus drinking out of the bucket and said so to the boss. A few of them also told the boss that they had "not seen the waterboy all morning," soon after I had been there less than an hour earlier. At first, these untrue stories tended to upset me, but I soon learned that waterboys must live with that kind of kidding and exaggeration, returning gibe for gibe in good nature.
But a few of the laborers--especially one or two--seemed to be quite malicious, and for some reason would actually lie to the boss about me, apparently determined to get me in serious trouble. I never knew why they did such mean things. It could have been because of the dog, for I felt sure some of the men did not want Goofus around, whether or not he drank out of the bucket. This I couldn't understand either, because even though this beloved pet of mine was a common cur with big ears and a long tail, he was kind and very friendly, constantly wagging that tail to show he was anxious to please.
I became ver adept in passing off, ignoring or returning the various kinds of kidding and taunts thrown at me--a skill learned only "on the job." Most homes and schools don't even try to teach it.
On one occasion, however, while I was working on this same campus renovation job, one of the workman who had frequently complained about me to the boss, did something particularly mean which I could not overlook. One morning when I had set the water bucket down close to him and two or three other workmen, Goofus was sitting near me, not making any noise and not bothering anyone. While the common drinking dipper (no individual drinking cups were furnished) was being passed around in the small group, this man known as "Butch" pulled a small bottle from is pocket, removed the cork stopper, and then poured all the contents of the bottle on Goofus' back, most of the clear liquid landing close to the dog's hindquarters. Instantly, almost before I realized what had happened, Goofus gave a fierce howl, jumped up and bolted away yelping in pain. Even though I did not know until later it was turpentine that "Butch" had thrown on my pet, I could very easily tell the stuff was burning the dog terribly. It was also obvious--both to me and the other workmen there--that this cruel act had been planned and intentionally carried out, apparently to hurt the dog and upset me.
I was furious and felt I just had to do something--something drastic against "Butch"--because of what had happened. But I was not big enough to fight him physically, and I had neither a gun nor a knife. As I looked around, however, I saw the bucked, almost full of cold water and big chunks of ice. So I angrily picked it up, swung it around in a big circle and brought it down on "Butch's" head with both a deep thud and a loud clatter. As the ice and water fell all over him, the big bucket, now upside down, settled down over his battered head, the edges coming to rest painfully on his collarbones.
This man was now almost wild with anger, swinging one fist blindly while the other hand was trying to lift the bucket off his head. When he finally could see, he tried to catch me, but I was too fast for him. I had left in a hurry, following the distant yelps of Goofus.
Soon after the excitement, I was told later by one of the workmen, "Butch" told the boss what I had done to him but said nothing about what he had first done to me and my pet dog. Whereupon, the boss decided to fire me as soon as he could find me. But several of the witnesses told him all that had happened, he changed his mind and instead of firing me he suspended "Butch" for a week without pay.
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